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Dec 14,2006AAA Travel High School Challenge Offers More than $100,000 in College Scholarships by Bend Weekly News Sources

AAA, the nation's largest network of leisure travel agencies, is once again rewarding high school students for their knowledge of geography and tourist destinations. The 5th annual AAA Travel High School Challenge begins January 8, 2007, and will award $100,000 in scholarships and prizes. The competition aims to increase travel and geographic literacy and encourage an interest in travel, tourism and hospitality careers among high school students

Taking the Challenge

Participating in the AAA Travel High School Challenge is easy. Between January 8 and January 16, 2007, any student in grades 9 through 12 can go online at www.AAA.com/travelchallenge to register and to get complete contest rules and details. Once enrolled, students will take a 15-minute online quiz. The top 5 online scorers in each state will advance to the state finals. Between March 6 and March 8, 2007, they'll take a proctored test, and a state champion will be named. The state champion will compete in the national finals, May 19-22, 2007, at Universal Studios in Orlando, Fla.

Scholarships

At the national finals, students have an opportunity to compete in a high-stakes, single-elimination bee for a grand prize $20,000 scholarship. Second and third place prizes will also be awarded at $10,000 and $5,000, respectively.

Two types of scholarships are available: unrestricted awards for any student with great travel trivia and geography skills, and travel-specific scholarships for those interested in careers in the travel and tourism industry. Every student who enrolls in the AAA Travel High School Challenge can be eligible for both.

In addition, the top five scorers in each state who express interest in travel-related careers will have an opportunity to submit an essay for both a state and national essay competition to win $56,000 in travel-specific scholarships.

Sponsorship

The AAA Travel High School Challenge, sponsored by Bank of America, Continental Airlines, Hard Rock Live, Marriott, Pleasant Holidays and Universal Orlando, is the official scholarship competition for AAA Travel, the largest full service leisure travel agency in North America. AAA Travel provides domestic and international airline tickets, cruises, escorted tours, independent tour packages, hotels, car rentals and other travel products. AAA Travel’s services are available to everyone and are also available on the Internet at AAA.com/travel.